Inside Outside

After years of working in startups, Sean Johnson and his team began getting approached by enterprises. These companies needed help moving on ideas, accessing specialists and understanding how to be iterative. Today, Sean's company Digital Intent works with venture-backed startups and Fortune 1000 companies wanting to be tech-enabled businesses. He is also a general partner at Founder Equity.

Brian and Sean discuss a variety of corporate innovation strategies. Here are a few highlights:

- Companies need to be making lots of little bets, with little bits of funds. Think like investors. Spread the risk. 
- Corporations innovation teams can have a similar cadence to a venture fund. Life of 7-10 years and 3 deals a year. Team churn concern. How to preserve knowledge.
- Have conversations with corporate teams who are connected with customers early. Act like a startup and get realistic feedback for needs and products. 
- Partner with startups. Startups are getting a channel they didn’t have, but are putting in resources and time to appease the corporation. Good strategy for corporations. 
- Try an EIR (Entrepreneurs-in-residence). No legacy baggage. 
- Arm corporate startup teams with a coach. 
- Develop internal VC boards with members that are external and bring domain experience.  
- Leverage the data companies collect by understanding how to use the data. This may create opportunities for less disruptive and more incremental improvements. 
- Traditional service companies (law, accountancies, and management consultants) will automate significant portions of their work. Reinvent these business models. 
- Use more tactical growth accounting. Manage to growth metrics and experiments. 

To connect with Sean Johnson, follow him at @intentionally, Digintent.com or founderequity.com

If you like this interview, you might also be interested in Ep. 98- Sean Ammirati with Birchmere Ventures & Author of The Science of Growth and Ep. 54- Robert Walcott with Kellogg on Innovation Trends

GET THE LATEST RESOURCES

Get the latest episodes of the Inside Outside Innovation podcast, in addition to thought leadership in the form of blogs, innovation resources, videos, and invitations to exclusive events.

SUBSCRIBE For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

Show Notes

After years of working in startups, Sean Johnson and his team began getting approached by enterprises. These companies needed help moving on ideas, accessing specialists and understanding how to be iterative. Today, Sean's company Digital Intent works with venture-backed startups and Fortune 1000 companies wanting to be tech-enabled businesses. He is also a general partner at Founder Equity. Brian and Sean discuss a variety of corporate innovation strategies. Here are a few highlights: - Companies need to be making lots of little bets, with little bits of funds. Think like investors. Spread the risk.  - Corporations innovation teams can have a similar cadence to a venture fund. Life of 7-10 years and 3 deals a year. Team churn concern. How to preserve knowledge. - Have conversations with corporate teams who are connected with customers early. Act like a startup and get realistic feedback for needs and products.  - Partner with startups. Startups are getting a channel they didn’t have, but are putting in resources and time to appease the corporation. Good strategy for corporations.  - Try an EIR (Entrepreneurs-in-residence). No legacy baggage.  - Arm corporate startup teams with a coach.  - Develop internal VC boards with members that are external and bring domain experience.   - Leverage the data companies collect by understanding how to use the data. This may create opportunities for less disruptive and more incremental improvements.  - Traditional service companies (law, accountancies, and management consultants) will automate significant portions of their work. Reinvent these business models.  - Use more tactical growth accounting. Manage to growth metrics and experiments.  To connect with Sean Johnson, follow him at @intentionally, Digintent.com or founderequity.com If you like this interview, you might also be interested in Ep. 98- Sean Ammirati with Birchmere Ventures & Author of The Science of Growth and Ep. 54- Robert Walcott with Kellogg on Innovation Trends GET THE LATEST RESOURCES Get the latest episodes of the Inside Outside Innovation podcast, in addition to thought leadership in the form of blogs, innovation resources, videos, and invitations to exclusive events. SUBSCRIBE For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

What is Inside Outside?

Inside Outside Innovation explores the ins and outs of innovation with raw stories, real insights, and tactical advice from the best and brightest in startups & corporate innovation.

Each week we bring you the latest thinking on talent, technology, and the future of innovation. Join our community of movers, shakers, makers, founders, builders, and creators to help speed up your knowledge, skills, and network.

Previous guests include thought leaders such as Brad Feld, Arlan Hamilton, Jason Calacanis, David Bland, Janice Fraser, and Diana Kander, plus insights from amazing companies including Nike, Cisco, ExxonMobil, Gatorade, Orlando Magic, GE, Samsung, and others.

This podcast is available on all podcast platforms and InsideOutside.io. Sign up for the weekly innovation newsletter at http://bit.ly/ionewsletter. Follow Brian on Twitter at @ardinger or @theiopodcast or Email brian@insideoutside.io